There were varying accounts of how far Cagle plunged, but a Hamilton County emergency management spokeswoman said it was "at least four stories."

Spokeswoman Amy Maxwell said the injured victim had been in the cold water at Rainbow Falls for at least an hour when rescuers reached him Wednesday afternoon in difficult terrain.

"The problem is, the terrain is very rough," she said. "Washed out trails, there's no trails for ATVs to come in and out of, so everything has to be done on foot."

Maxwell said Cagle died before he could be brought to a waiting ambulance.

The station reported members of Cagle's family hugged, wept, and tried to console each other as recovery efforts continued. It took a half-hour for eight teams of two rescuers each to reach Cagle. It was after 8 p.m. when they retrieved his body.